Nothing Like Yesterday
by Logans4ever
Summary: When Lois returns, the world is different. Hints of Clois


**A/N: **I can't seem to stop writing since the finale, guess it's my way of coping…although I just seem to find more reasons to be bitter at this point. This isn't beta-ed and I'm sleep deprived, so be warned.

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**Nothing Like Yesterday**

When Lois returns, there's no one left to welcome her back. No warm embraces and tears of joy, only confusion and a sense of abandonment. The _Planet_ is the same as it ever was and her coworkers, the ones that mattered enough to remember, have faded back into a life that's moved on without her.

Her miraculous reappearance warrants an awkward five minute phone call from her father where they continue to avoid any show emotion. Nothing comes from her sister. Although Lois isn't sure if it's that Lucy doesn't know about what's been happening or if she's just too busy to care.

Mrs. Kent is a mess, too distraught over her missing son to be any sort of balm to Lois' bruised self worth and when Lois asks what happened, the two women Lois thinks the world of suddenly become quiet, the unspoken words between them making her head spin.

Their hesitant explanations swirl around her, half truths that ring hollow with gaping holes and flawed logic. For the first time, it hits Lois how little she truly knows of these people; the cousin that she has always considered a sister is now nothing more than a stranger, and the woman she once wished was her mother no longer holds the same appeal.

Any energy she might have had disappears and Lois realizes just how tired she really is; of pretending she doesn't notice the cryptic glances that have dominated every conversation for the past five years, and pretending not to care that she can't compete with the lure of the girl next door persona. Most of all, she's tired of acting like the constant rejection from those she loves most doesn't cut like a knife, leaving scars that no one but her can see.

The silence that follows her abrupt departure only confirms what she already knows; there's no reason left to stay. The family she always thought was here is nothing but an illusion.

As she pulls onto the dirt road for what she knows will be the last time, Lois can't help but remember the first time she drove up this path, and how it felt as though she was leaving modern civilization in her wake. And how that night she missed the hustle and bustle of the busy city, her tired mind yearning for the sound of cars rushing by. Somehow, her short visit spanned weeks and the list of things she would miss of her old life slowly grew, from the busy night life to the freedom to do as she pleased.

She just never realized what she would miss most would be feeling like a somebody, important enough to be the _first_ call, not one that comes as last of the afterthoughts.

It's this thought that flashes through her mind months later, a day decietful in it's averageness. As her eyes clash with the blue ones that once fueled her fantasies the only sign of surprise is the slight pause in her step, and Lois silently congratulates herself on this victory. The connection is broken in an instant, and as though it never happened she's moving past him without a glance. Gone are any traces of the friendship they've built in the last five years, or the new confusing emotions that had been steadily growing between them those last few months.

To the outside world, he's a stranger.

If he's surprised, he doesn't show it and Lois can't help but think that he's probably been informed of all the changes that have happened without him. It doesn't matter though, Lois assures herself, because she doesn't care. Not anymore. If she ever had a doubt of her importance to him, she only needs to remember their last meeting; the fact he couldn't be bothered to so much as look at her, ignoring the obvious display of nerves that had run through her system.

In another time, she thinks, he would have chased after her and demanded the bond between them be acknowledged. Instead, he watches silently as she walks further from him, refusing to look back as she leaves behind all they were, because today is nothing like yesterday and they will never be the same again.


End file.
